Noob first gunshow with intent...

S

SamNavy

New member
SGK in Newport News, VA... I've been to a few gunshows in the past, but this is the first one where my goal is to actually buy a gun. I'm looking for a used HD 12ga... Maverick 88, Savage-Stevens, Mossberg 500, H&R etc.

I'm also looking for a 9mm Keltec Sub2000... I know KT doesn't make many of these and they're hard to find. How much should I look to pay new/used for one of these? I'm thinking under $300 used and $300-$350 new depending on what it comes with. Anybody have thoughts?

Also for cheap 9mm plinking ammo... what should I be looking for brand-wise and price?

In general, how "negotiable" are the price-tag prices at gun-shows? Are those just a starting point for negotiation, or is it generally assumed that you can offer 15% below asking price for cash?
 
I know that at gunshows some of the vendors are more open to negotiations. Some people think that if you hit em at the right time they are more open to it. For instance at the end of the day or end of the weekend they just want to make some sales so they will negotiate more. I personally have never tried that. With the two guns I have bought at the show one was a Beretta that I talked down $50 and the other was a Bersa that I couldn't get any lower. Keep in mind although they were bought same day they were bought from different vendors. My feeling is that they won't negotiate down to where they lose money so don't worry about any of that nonsense. You probably will only see them at gunshows and they probably won't remember you so it definitely doesn't hurt to try negotiating.

As far as the ammo, you probably won't get any lower prices unless you are buying BULK. What do they care about $20 for one box of ammo going to a different vendor when the next guy is gonna buy $200 worth of bulk ammo.

If you have a Big 5 around you should keep any eye on their sales. I got a Mossberg 500 combo for $280+tax. This is lower then any other price I have seen, even on used ones. Plus it has the 28" barrel for hunting and 18" barrel for HD. I look at backpage a lot and the 500s on there are asking $300+ with only one barrel.
 
Oh and brand and price for 9mm, go online real quick and check ammotogo.com and see what their prices are. From what I have seen they have the lowest prices and best shipping (my experience only). Ammoseek.com is pretty cool too because it compiles the prices for other online stores right there so you can compare side by side. My cousin only gets the bulk reloaded stuff at the gunshow. It comes in an ammo box (like the metal army ammo boxes) and is just loose in there. My understanding is that it is reloaded by a company so I don't know how I feel about that. I have shot about 100 rounds of their 9mm stuff and it worked good enough. I just don't know how I feel about using it a lot. I go with the Tulammo in my XD. You hear a lot of complaints about it, but it has been 100% for me. Cheap too.
 
In general, how "negotiable" are the price-tag prices at gun-shows? Are those just a starting point for negotiation, or is it generally assumed that you can offer 15% below asking price for cash?
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Nothing to do but see if they'll dicker. Take cash or a trade fodder gun. Know the value of what you want and what you have. Waving cash in front of the seller can't hurt. Don't be afraid to walk away without regrets if you can't make a sane deal.

Think of it as a big garage sale.

Have fun.
 
To the naked eye, gun shows are a severe ripoff. You have to dig deeper to find real deals, and know what guns are really worth. Also keep an eye out for people walking around with guns, they may be trying to sell them. If you spy someone with a shotgun don't be shy, ask them if it's for sale.
 
Advice has been awesome... and it almost worked. Having lunch now.

Found new KelTec for $299 and new Mav88 $210 plus 2xhicap 33rd Korean glock mags and a cheap red-dot sight (why not?) all otd w/tax $575 was our deal. I started filling out paperwork when he asked for my orders... crap.

Turns out that my temporary Virginia orders combined with Florida drivers licence will not allow me to buy rifles/shots. Gonna ask around if there's a legal loophole, but he was damned confident we were out of luck on a sale. Gotta wait a bit longer.
 
Turns out that my temporary Virginia orders combined with Florida drivers licence will not allow me to buy rifles/shots. Gonna ask around if there's a legal loophole...
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I don't believe there's a loophole unless your Navy job qualifies you as a federal law enforcement officer (unlikely) or you hold a Federal Firearms License (if you did, you probably wouldn't have posted any of this).

U.S. citizens are normally required to reside in a state for 90 days before buying any firearm there. From the ATF FAQ:
The State of residence is the State in which an individual is present; the individual also must have an intention of making a home in that State. A member of the Armed Forces on active duty is a resident of the State in which his or her permanent duty station is located. If a member of the Armed Forces maintains a home in one State and the member’s permanent duty station is in a nearby State to which he or she commutes each day, then the member has two States of residence and may purchase a firearm in either the State where the duty station is located or the State where the home is maintained. An alien who is legally in the United States is considered to be a resident of a State only if the alien is residing in that State and has resided in that State continuously for a period of at least 90 days prior to the date of sale of the firearm.
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(Emphasis mine)

http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/unlicensed-persons.html#state-residency
 
Yup. I own a house here in VaBch, and my Florida DL has that address on it. Overwhelming consensus from several dealers at the show was that as long as I had a local address on my Florida drivers license, and had another form of ID or proof of residence (checkbook or what not), then I would be legal for a longgun, and that my orders were not required.

So I made friends with a local dealer who has a shop and will be visiting him this week with a checkbook and all my paperwork. We'll see if he'll score me the same (or close) to the same good deal on those 2 guns.

On another note, I saw only 4 KelTec Sub2000's in the whole show... and it's not a small show. They were all 9mm. 2 of them were marked $299 NIB with one magazine. As I was standing over the first one that I saw and was talking to the dealer, there was a guy standing behind me listening to the conversation... as soon as the dealer said "Well, I don't think I can sell you anything today", the guy behing me says "I'll take it, and 5 of the Glock mags". The show had only been open about 25mins and based on the fact that I only saw 4 total, I can assume the $299 was a great buy.

The other 2 were used, "private sale" and were $425 and $450 respectively. They both were stock with the single stock magazine... people hoping to cash in on low volume/hi demand.

The Hi-Point carbines, mostly in .45 ACP, were all over the place on price, but they were everywhere, but I've decided on the KelTec for the matching Glock mag's that will make my buying choice of a full-size polymer easy.

Overall, great learning experience, picked up and handled a lot of guns, talked to a lot of people... very refreshing experience over what I'm used to in stores.
 
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To the naked eye, gun shows are a severe ripoff.
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No, uhhhh, foolin'.

We have two here, late spring and early fall. Which is to say, today.

I took along my S&W 19-4 as potential trade fodder. (Only saw one I was moved to try to trade for, a 90s era Springfield Mil-Spec .45. Alas, "cash only".) I kept an eye on the value of Model 19s at the show. Some vendors were asking as much as $795! :eek:
 
To the naked eye, gun shows are a severe ripoff.
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It can go either way.

CCI small primers $100 5k No Hazmat!
1K 55gn FMJ .224 bullets $70
Nice looking M1A $800

Then there is the the guy asking $599 for a CIA AMD56.

I take the Droid and if I see something looks interesting I price match it on Google.


Doug
 
+1 on having a smartphone with you to check prices. If you don't have one either get a buddy to go with you who does, or do lots of homework before and only look at what you did your homework on. Don't fall for really liking something and not knowing much about it. That's when they will really soak you on the prices.
 
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